DataWiz for iOS can be used to set alerts that let smartphone users know if they're in danger of going over carrier data limits in what Professor Mung Chiang, director of EDGE Lab, calls the age of $10 for every gigabyte ("You'll never go over your mobile data allowance again!" the iTunes write-up boasts.). With an optional VoIP feature, the personal bandwidth management app tracks cellular and Wi-Fi data without draining the battery.

"DataWiz is a tool for smartphone customers to really evaluate their data usage and reconsider the way in which they are approaching their current data plans," Chiang says.

Bob Brown is a news editor for Network World, blogs about network research, and works most closely with our staff's wireless/mobile reporters. Follow him on Twitter at Alphadoggs and connect via email at bbrown@nww.com